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Personal Liberty

Personal Liberty image
Parent Issue
Day
1
Month
January
Year
1844
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Petitions are in circulaiion in this State, pmying the Legislature to enacta law for the further proteciion of Personal Liberly, prohibiting undcr suitable penakies, any judge o msgistrate acting under the authonty of tin Siaie, from taking cognizance of claims fo fngitive slaves undf tho tliird section of tb act of Cuiigress of Feb. 12, 1793, and als prohibiting any sheriff, jailor, or other office or citizen of 'Ms State from eeizing, detain ing, or imprisoning any person ciaimd as slave, or aiding in transportin any person & claimed fiom this Stal e.As the object of this petition may not be rightly apprehended by a!l, we will endeavor to make il plain in as few wpïds as possible. The clause in the Conslitution respecting persons owing service or labor, is familiar to every one. It declares that sucli pereons, escaping into olher States, Bhall notbe discharged by any law or regulation therein, Ij ehall be delivered up, on claim of Iho party t whom such service or labor may be due.On this seciion was based the Act of Con gress of Feb. 22, 1793, which próvidos a folio ws: ' WJien a person held to labor in ony of th United StateF, or in eilher of the territorie on the nortii-west or eouth of the river Ohio under the laws thereof, shall escape into any other of the states or tertitoriet', the person to whom such lubor or Bervice may l due, his agent orattorney, is liereby empow ered to seizoor arrest siicli fugitive from labo nnd to lake him or her beforc nny jude of th circuit or district courïs of' the United Sttites residing or being within the s!a!e, ut befor iiiy magistrale of n count}', city or town corporate, whorein such seizure orsrrest sha] be made, nnd upon proof to the satisfuction o sucli judge or magistrate, eilher by oral testiniony or affiJavit takoj) before and certifie( by a magisirate of any such. territory, rlin the person so seized or urrestcd, duth, unde the laws of the state or territory from whicl he or she fled, owe service or lubor to the person claiming him or her, it shall be the du ty of such jüdore or magistrale to give a certifícate tiiereof to such claimanf, Iiis ogent o attorney, which ehnll be stifficient wurran for removing the suid fugilive from labor to Ihe state of lem'tory from which he or she fled."- Slrovcfs Sketch, p. 165.This Act of Congress was the paramount rule of action respeclingf fugitive slaves for about fifi y ycars, until a nevv construction was put upon sume portions of h by the decisión of the Supreme Cotirt, in the sJave case betwren Pennsyhnnia and Maryland, in Februnry, 1842. The Court, through Judge Story, declared, 1. "That no State law can be perniitted to repúlate, qualify, controJ or rest rain the unqualiHed right of ownership in elaves. The owtier has in every State, all the rights con'erred by the local laws of his own State. - States cannot lejrislate in aid of, or against he riphts of the slaveholder. 2. The power exercised by State magisrafes,- under the laws of 1793, was only by snfferanop. Congress had no poive' to vest Sfaie officers, as such, with such privileges. - The Statts might, clearly, prohibit the nagfctrates from any inlerferen.ee in the case."If the decisión of the Supreme Court on hese two points be correct, and it ought fo e, for there ie no appeal í'rom ts decisión, it bllows that State Magistrates have no auhorily to act for the return of fogitive slaves n any case. The Court 6ay that the "States anmU legislate in aid of, or against therights f the mastcr," and then go on to affirm that Congress had no power to vest State officere, 3 such with such privileges," and that they vere permitted to act merely, by svfferance, Jut it hns well been aaked "if Congress can onfer a power on persons by mere conniancc or toleration, which they cannotby dieet legislation? Certainly they cannot. This orresponds with the opinión of Judge Taney, who said,! The ma ster must go bef ore the U. States, Judge to eslablish hts claim. The act of Coni ess g-ave no power to issue a warrant to seure n slave." Henee wfcat is now asked of the Leo islature , to do whal the Supreme Court has declard it hos "clearly" the righ tto do - "prohibit ïeir magistrates frora any interference in ie case." The Supreme Court have dccif'ed ïat Slavery is properly a local, a municipal nstitution, but by stipulntion, slaveholders lave a right "to catch their fugiüves in the ee States, and take them back. The Leglnture are not asked to interfere whh the ght of recapture by (lie slaveholders, but íey are nsked to prohibit our own citizens om "any interference," in the case. Let the jretended owner and the assumed slave seltle i?ir difficulties before the aulhorities of the Jnitcd States, who alone have any righi to ecide in the premises. That thiF course should be enforced by the uthorities of the States, is ftirther apparení rom the opinión of Judge Wayne, one of tlie Supreme Judges. On this occasion he6aid: "The rernoval of a slave from a State withnt legal proef of the claim to him, is an offenceproperl) jrunishablc. In the Free Slates, t least, where the piesumption wrs in favor f freedom, the rnaster might seize, but could ot remore, without snita.bly eslablishing his laim, and States might punish. the offence of do'mg il."Tliis decisión of the Supreme Court has een understood Ü.roughout the country as iere stated, and Massahusetts and more reently Vermont, have pnssed laws in conformty with it. The Act of the latier State was passed aknost nnanimously, the vote in the louse being 168 for it, and only five against t. It rendt as follows. vfo. 15. An Act, for thr protection of PERSONAL LIBKRTY. [t is hereby enac'ed by the General Assembly of the State of Ver.mont, as follows: Sec. 1. No court of record in this State, nor any jude ihereof, no justice of the peace nor olher nlaoristrate, acting under the authority of this State, shall hereafter take cognization of, or grant any certifícate, warrant or other procesa, in any case ansing under section three of an act of congress, passet Febnary twelfUi, seventeen hundred and nine■y-tbree, entitled 'an act respecting fugitives "rom jnsticp, o ná persons escapinj; from the service of their masters,' to any person clairning- any other person as a fugitivo slave, in this State.Suc. 2. No sheriff, deputy sheriff; higi bnilirT, constable, jailer, or other officer o citizen of this State, shall hereafter, seize arrest, or detain, oraid in the eeiznre, arres or detention, or imprisonment in ony jai] o other building, belonging to this State, or to any comity, town, city, or person tiierein, o finy pereon for the ren pon that he is or may be claimed ns a fugitive flavo. Sec. 3. No sheriff, dep-ity sheriff, higl bail ff, constable, or other officer or citizen o (his State, shall transport, or remove, or ni( or assist in the transportation or remova ofnnyfugitve slave or any person claimec as such, from any place in this State to air other plnce within or w.thout the same. Skc. 4. If any such judpe, justice of the peacn, magistrale, officer or citizen shal offend against the two preceding sections such judge, jusiice of the peace, mngisttate officer or citizen, shall be subject to the penolties provided in section five of thi acf. Sf.c. 5. .Any judge of any court of repon in this State, any justice of the peace or othe magristrate, any sheriff, deputj sheriff, higi bniliff, constable, or jailer, or any citizen o this Siete, who shall offend ogainst tb provisions of this ac, by acting directly o indirectly undcr tho provisions of 6cctioithree of the oct of Congress nfqresaid, sha forfeit asum not exceeding one thoueand dol lars, tot he U6e of the State, to be recovere upon nformntion or naictment, or be impris oned in the States Prison not exceeding five years. Provided, That this act shnll not be construed to extend to any c.tizcn of tlijs State acting as n jun2e of llie circuit or distrct court of the Untied States, or ns marshal or as depticy marshal of the district of Vermont, or to nny perpon acting untlcr the command or authority of said courts or marshal. Skc. 6. An nel entitled 'an act to extend the right of trial by jury,' approved üctober 20! h, 18-10 is rcpealed . Skc. 7. This act shall tafce effect from its passnge. Approved Nov. 1, 1843, A similar act is needed in Michigan for the snme reasons it is in Vermont. It is needed for the protertion of our free colored citizens from the unjust cloims of kidnappers and slaveholders. The Liberty for life of our citizens. ought not to be dependnnl on the mere notion of a justice of the peace. The Supreme Court, by their decisión, have prohrbited the States from throwing around their cihzens the shield of a jury trial, and hnve declared the whole jurisdiction over the subject to be vested in Congress. With them let the responsibility rest, and let their acts be carried out by their own officerf..

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Subjects
Signal of Liberty
Old News